West Point Press FY2023 Annual Report

Fiscal Year

2023

Director’s Note...........1 West Point Press Leadership...........2 Opportunities and Programs...........3 2023 Performance Highlights...........4 2023 Publications...........5 Friends of the Press...........6 Looking Forward...........7 Impact & Accolades.........8 Supporting USMA.........9

WELCOME TO THE WEST POINT PRESS

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BY COL. JORDON SWAIN, PH.D.

In our inaugural year, the Press received thirty-three monograph proposals. We have published two of these books as of the writing of this note and have nineteen manuscripts in development, pending peer review and a decision by the Editorial Board. The Press also helped publish seven volumes of four different journals, two reports from conferences involving Academy faculty, one conference proceedings, one white paper, and one new digital textbook. We also became an introductory member of the Association of University Presses!

We learned a lot during our first year. Going forward into the next fiscal year, we will maintain our focus on quality while demonstrating that the Press is intent on publishing a variety of scholarly works from a wide array of authors.

We’re very excited about the projects in our publishing pipeline - impactful content from a diverse group of scholars that span a range of interesting and exciting topics.

With the projected addition of three new teammates to our digital textbook team, we will increase our support for digital textbook development for USMA courses – with a focus on digital texts for core courses that support a large number of cadets, but that also have the potential to be adopted by educators at other institutions (like the modified version of our digital leadership textbook adopted by the New Jersey State Police this year).

The new year will also see a facelift to our digital textbook platform, including the completion of a rebranding and the release of an improved mobile app that will facilitate access to various digital texts while students travel. We will also continue to support our new partner – the Naval Institute Press, who entered into an agreement with us this year to leverage our digital platform capability for their publishing efforts.

We will continue to realize efficiencies across our various journals. We will align and consolidate contracts and efforts associated with things like submission management systems, website presence, and maintenance – freeing up both time and money for journal editors and allowing

them to focus on other priorities. We will also explore ways to incorporate an existing journal into our stable of publications (the Industrial and Systems Engineering Review), and the creation of a new peer-reviewed journal focused on leadership and character education and development. West Point’s mission is to “develop leaders of character.” It seems only fitting we publish scholarly work in this realm – featuring input from scholars across academia and industry! Finally, we are working with the Center for the Study of Civil-Military Operations to explore the publication of a new journal.

In the spirit of helping efficiently and effectively export the intellectual capital from the US Military Academy, we will continue to look for ways to support or elevate the other scholarly platforms at West Point, like the Lieber Institute, Combating Terrorism Center, the Modern War Institute, and the West Point Digital History Center. We will also brainstorm ways to support the emerging West Point Werx innovation hub in the USMA Office of Research.

As we move into our second year of operation, we will focus on expanding the awareness of the Press’ offerings (e.g., books, journals, digital texts, etc.) and on communicating our value proposition as a platinum open-access publisher to scholars not only at West Point but around the world.

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the support of key champions of the Press – our Editorial Board, all of whom have significant additional duties, yet who made time this year to support the Press in myriad ways; the 15th Dean of the Academic Board, BG Shane Reeves who has provided us valuable resources (time, money, and people) and allowed us the latitude to break new ground; and several USMA graduates and friends of the US Military Academy whose generosity has been instrumental in our early success In closing, I am excited about the future of the West Point Press and the impact we will have on the Academy and in the world of scholarly publishing.

COL. Jordon Swain, Ph.D. Director of West Point Press WEST POINT PRESS FY23 REPORT

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SCHOLARLY PUBLISHING FOR STUDENTS, SCHOLARS, & LEADERS AROUND THE WORLD

The Press signifies that West Point is not only a military institution that graduates cadets into the Army, but it’s also an institution of learning that can bring academics from across the globe to the Academy to create knowledge and generate intellectual capital.

COL Jordon Swain, Ph.D. Director

Morton Ender, PhD

Paul Evangelista, PhD

Corvin Connolly, Ph.D. Deputy Director

John Gregory, PhD

Robert Lawless, JD

Matthew Merrill Chief Digital Officer

Robert McDonald, PhD

LTC Ron Alcala Executive Director

Courtney Morris, PhD

Sean Morrow, PhD

Editorial Board Members’ Role Actively advocate and act as ambassadors for the Press Help solicit book proposals

Approve all West Point Press book projects - considering peer reviewer input and author response Approve the addition of new journals

WEST POINT PRESS FY23 REPORT

A WIDE RANGE OF SCHOLARLY OFFERINGS

Monograph Publishing with the West Point Press is determined by an editorial board composed of USMA faculty scholars. Under the Board’s guidance, the Press offers an innovative range of content to fulfill the evolving needs of scholars, students, authors, leaders, and readers.

The Press publishes monographs from the STEM disciplines, the humanities, and the social sciences with original and highly relevant content that leverages faculty expertise. The Press also publishes works focusing on or featuring the United States Military Academy.

Journals published under the West Point Press colophon possess their own editorial boards and review processes.

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West Point Press Launch

Digital Textbooks produced by the Press are developed in coordination with West Point’s academic departments and a dedicated editor with deep expertise in the subject area.

Reports, Proceedings, White Papers, and Podcasts supported by the West Point Press leverage the knowledge and connections of West Point’s faculty to provide insights on topics relevant to the Academy, the Army, the nation, and the world.

MONOGRAPH PUBLICATION PROCESS MARKETING & DISTRIBUTION

The monographs the Press publishes are Platinum Open Access (i.e., free). The West Point Press does not pay royalties to authors, nor do we ask authors to pay anything to publish their work. The Press assumes responsibility for all editing, indexing, production, and distribution costs. The Press also allows authors to retain the copyright to their work. We adhere to best practices recommended by the Association of University Presses.

WEST POINT PRESS FY23 REPORT

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PUBLISH YOUR NEXT PROJECT WITH THE WEST POINT PRESS

Platinum open access model of publishing

Coaching and mentoring

No author fee or subvention required Author retains copyright to his/her work

No strict timeline between proposal acceptance and final manuscript submission

Author has input into the distribution plan

Innovative digital platform possibilities

We aim to be a best partner - working with our authors to ensure high-quality scholarship ends up on the shelves and desks where it will have the most influence

Digital Textbooks

1,800 Monographs

33 Proposals 12 in Development 2 Published 3 Active Series

New Digital Textbook Users

4,500+ Digital Textbooks Sold

Journals

4 Titles 7 Volumes

Reports, Proceedings, White Papers

2 Reports 1 White Paper 1 Proceedings

Podcasts

6 Podcasts

WEST POINT PRESS FY23 REPORT

20 Universities/Organizations where our Digital Textbooks are in use

7 Digital Textbooks in Development

BEST-IN-CLASS PUBLISHING FOR PRINT AND DIGITAL WORKS

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2023

PUBLICATIONS Books “From submission, through editing, and final publication, the West Point Press provided a world class experience. Their editorial team was author-focused at every stage, providing responsive, collegial, consistent, and expert advice and work. They are everything an academic press should be. I would publish with them again without any hesitation.”

Journals

Reports, White Papers, Proceedings

–Prof. Sean Watts Author of The West Point Companion to the ICRC‘s Updated Commentary on the Third Geneva Convention

“With an industry-leading open access platform, and thorough, meticulous, and professional editorial processes, the West Point Press ensures the highest quality publication and distribution of academic research.”

–Prof. Hitoshi Nasu Author of The Concept of Security in International Law

Podcasts

WEST POINT PRESS FY23 REPORT

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SCHOLARLY PUBLISHING FOR STUDENTS, SCHOLARS, & LEADERS AROUND THE WORLD

Mr. and Mrs. Darcy Anderson ‘78 Thomas Brady ‘96 Tony and Joanne Guerrerio ’69 Kathleen S. Hildreth ‘83 and Bradford C. Hildreth Patrick and Heather Lowry ‘96 Michael and Bremond MacDougall William F. Murdy ‘64 The Sarah and Ross Perot Jr. Foundation USMA Class of ‘83

The West Point Press will motivate them to continue their passion for learning, which means that they’re not just going to be tactically proficient, but operationally and strategically proficient. They’re going to have this passion for learning that will follow them all the way through their career.“ – Brig. Gen. Shane Reeves 15th Dean of the Academic Board

WEST POINT PRESS FY23 REPORT

INTEGRITY AND INNOVATION IN PUBLISHING

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Digital Textbook Platform Facelift Completion of rebranding Release of an improved mobile app

Support for the Naval Institute Press Continue to support their use of our digital platform capability

Add new journals to our growing stable of publications Publish monographs including (but not limited to): Updated biography on Sylvanus Thayer Annotated autobiography on Henry O. Flipper Work exploring Leadership and Innovation During Crisis

Realize efficiencies (i.e., cost savings) in our operations:

In the spirit of helping efficiently and effectively export intellectual capital from the US Military Academy, We will publish more content from USMA’s numerous conferences We will continue to look for ways to support or elevate the other scholarly platforms at West Point, including the Lieber Institute, Combating Terrorism Center, Modern War Institute, and Digital History Center We will also brainstorm ways to support the emerging West Point Werx innovation hub in the USMA Office of Research.

WEST POINT PRESS FY23 REPORT

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A COMMITTMENT TO QUALITY

West Point Press Journals

“The Cyber Defense Review is an exceptional journal. The articles in its pages make very substantive contributions to contemporary debates on cyber issues at a time when those debates have become ever more important and more urgent for the United States and the world.”

General David Petraeus, US Army (Ret.), former Commander of the Surge in Iraq, US Central Command, and NATO/US Forces in Afghanistan, and former Director of the CIA

“The Cyber Defense Review is the must-read journal for those of us dealing with the most dynamic domain currently in warfare - cyber.”

Honorable Patrick J. Murphy, 32nd Army Under Secretary “The Cyber Defense Review is a truly great resource for professionals interested in the intersection of national security and cyber.”

Major General John Davis, US Army (Ret.) “The Cyber Defense Review is the top journal in the world examining cyber operations at the strategic, operational, and tactical levels of conflict and instability. It is my “go-to” source for sophisticated, yet accessible, discussion of matters beyond my expertise but that provide context to my own work.”

Prof. Michael N. Schmitt G. Norman Lieber Distinguished Scholar, US Military Academy at West Point “The MIROR journal brings cutting-edge research, best operational practices, and leadership perspectives directly to security practitioners.”

Rebecca Morgan, Sr. Advisor of the DoD Insider Threat, Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security Counterintelligence, Law Enforcement and Security

“Taking on the Report as its Editor-in-Chief this year is really an incredible opportunity. I’m fortunate to have a hardworking, intelligent, and dedicated staff at my disposal as well as understanding, patient, and extremely helpful officer support.”

CDT Devon Smith, Class of 2024

WEST POINT PRESS FY23 REPORT

ADDING VALUE TO THE ACADEMY AND THE NATION

We make the full range and value of research generated by our authors to the broader public We support the development of early career faculty and facilitate cadet development We expand and strengthen West Point’s connection with academics outside of the Academy

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We elevate research-based centers at West Point We demonstrate the Academy’s support to research and faculty – positively influencing USMA’s ability to attract and retain top talent We extend the mission, influence, and brand of USMA and raise the public profile and reputation of the Academy

WEST POINT PRESS FY23 REPORT

ABOUT THE PRESS - Established in 2022, the West Point Press is the publishing arm of the United States Military Academy at West Point. It embodies and advances the Academy’s mission and core values by publishing practical knowledge to students, scholars, and leaders around the world. The Press disseminates knowledge via peer-reviewed monographs and journals, digital textbooks, proceedings, reports, white papers, and podcasts. Our monographs and journals are peer-reviewed and open-access.

Content published under the West Point crest reflects a commitment to the highest standards of scholarship.

The West Point Press is a proud member of the Association of University Presses.

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